Etymograph

English

Norbert

Norbert comes from Old High German nord ‘north’, and goes back to Proto-Indo-European *nér ‘under (the surface)’.

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nér‘under (the surface)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*nurþraz‘north, northern’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*norþr‘northern, northernly’reconstructed
  4. Old High Germanc. 750–1050nord‘north’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 2009Norbert

attested reconstructed ? uncertain or disputed

Lineage

  1. Proto-Indo-Europeanc. 4500–2500 BCE*nér‘under (the surface)’reconstructed
  2. Proto-Germanicc. 500 BCE–200 CE*nurþraz‘north, northern’reconstructed
  3. Proto-West Germanicc. 200–500 CE*norþr‘northern, northernly’reconstructed
  4. Old High Germanc. 750–1050nord‘north’
  5. Englishearliest quotation 2009Norbert

Earliest quotation: 2009, Jeff Carlisle, Soccer's Most Wanted II: “Norbert is a moniker one normally doesn't associate with…”

Linked words

through Proto-Germanic *nurþraz ‘north, northern’

northern, 3 more

through Proto-West Germanic *norþr ‘northern, northernly’

north, 3 more

Today it means

name A male given name from the Germanic languages.

Language periods are conventional ranges, not dates for this word.

Etymograph / Proto-Indo-European *nér / Norbert

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